With the re-opening of the Royal Canal
in late 2010, it is now possible to complete the circular route formed by the Royal
Canal, River Liffey, Grand Canal, River Shannon and Camlin River.

The total journey is approximately 356km with a total of 93 locks. It
comprises ~77km on the River Shannon (including ~27km across Lough Ree) and 2
locks, 132km on the Grand Canal (44 locks), 1km on the River Liffey, 145km on
the Royal Canal (47 locks) and either 1km or 5km on the Camlin River depending
on route. At an extreme push, it could be done in 7 very long days
(subject to the restrictions noted below and nothing
going wrong mechanically), but one should take a more leisurely approach!
You can get an idea of typical progress by looking at the
logs of some of the boats that have
completed the circuit.

In an effort to encourage people to make the circular journey, the Dublin
Branch has commissioned a certificate and plaque to be awarded to
vessels completing the route. We’ve taken the liberty of naming the route the Green & Silver route
- see below.

The
Record of vessels which have navigated the
"Green & Silver" Route can be found
here. A partial list of boats currently en-route is found
here.

On
the 25th of June 1946, Tom and Angela Rolt left Athlone aboard, Le Coq, a 28ft x
8ft converted ship's lifeboat, on a voyage that would inspire both their
contemporaries and successive generations of waterways enthusiasts, for, unlike
most of us, Tom Rolt documented this voyage in his book “Green and Silver”
published in 1949 (and once again in print and
available).

From Athlone, they journeyed down the Shannon and entered the Grand Canal at
Shannon Harbour. From there, they voyaged to Dublin and then returned to the
Shannon via the Royal Canal. Then, they voyaged north to Lough Key and back
south to Lough Derg, also taking in the West Clare Railway of Percy French fame.

In her foreword to the 1993 edition of the book, Ruth Delany wrote: "… Green
and Silver became a classic and was an important element in the campaign
launched by the small group who founded the Inland Waterways Association of
Ireland in 1954 to save the Shannon navigation from strangulation by low
bridges... It captures for all time the waterways as they were then, at their
very lowest ebb, and his enchantment at what he experienced shines through
strongly". Indeed the IWAI’s logo and burgee colour-scheme derive from the title
of Rolt’s inspirational book. Incidentally, Ruth Delany was aboard Hark
(shown at right), the last boat to do the circular route of Royal and Grand
canals in 1955, prior to the canal’s closure in 1961.

With, the closure of Ireland’s Royal Canal in 1961, Rolt’s Green and Silver
offered successive generations of boaters the only opportunity to experience
this journey by boat. His book offered a glimpse of what might be experienced if,
and when, the canal was restored. Rolt was the first to document a successful
transit of the route in Green & Silver, a book which had such a positive influence on the development of the Irish
waterways. It seems fitting therefore to name the route the Green & Silver
route. The name Green & Silver also echoes the mixed urban & rural nature of the route.

IWAI member Mick Farrell got a bit
poetic when reflecting on the
Green & Silver challenge!

The Quest for Rolt's Lost Treasure

Come all you lads and lassies,
From Belturbet to Beleek,
From the Shannon's side to the Barrow's tide,
There's treasure for to seek,
There's Green and Silver to be won,
Across the Mucky Mer,
O'er Grand and Royal, you'll have to toil,
If you want to claim your share.

Some hardships you'll encounter,
No shore power to be had,
Your gin and tonic's full of weed,
And your wine and cheese gone bad,
But persevere as you push those gates,
As you sweat upon the rack,
At the end of the day, there'll be time for play,
And time to have some craic.

And as you slowly navigate,
Watching walker's moving faster,
You'll start to think that you were mad,
To embark on this disaster,
But moving slowly gives you time,
To ponder your surrounds,
The man made ditch, that nature switched,
Into a Holy Ground.

Now Long John Slevin weaves his web,
Upon the world wide thingy,
To lure you all out on this quest,
By boat or barge or dingy,
Then Popeye Kinahan will strike,
Beware of him he's shifty,
"A rally fee, you'll pay to me,
Or you won't pass th' M-50".

So you've finally travelled in Rolt's wake,
Now you can claim your prize,
As you look down at your wee small hoard,
You won't believe your eyes,
And you'll ask if it was worth it ?
But if the truth be told,
It's the Green & Silver in your head,
That's worth it's weight in gold.

If
you intend making the journey, we've organised a scheme to recognise your
ambition and your
achievement on completion. Have a look at our
record of boats which are known to have
completed the journey. Some of our participants are making the trip over
the course of a year or more -
see whose currently
en-route!

Do get in touch with
Dublin Branch by email
if you're interested in undertaking the trip. Those planning the journey can get:

a Logbook to stamp along the route as evidence/souvenir of
passage
- some lockkeepers
have been provided with "stamps" and have
kindly agreed to stamp your log book - at the moment we've stamps
distributed for
Athlone, Richmond Harbour, Spencer Dock, Shannon Harbour, Lowtown, and Grand
Canal Dock - you can also download your
Logbook - we recommend you
print it on manila paper for best effect (cut down a standard office
manila folder to A4 size);
If you prefer, we're happy to send
you a logbook free of charge.

An
especially commissioned burgee based on the cover design of Rolt's
classic book at a cost of €25.

On
successful completion of the journey, we will present you with:

a numbered certificate (free of charge) -
certificates are numbered in the order of completion or as notified to
Dublin Branch by email.
Note that where more than one boat completes the journey
in company, we expect the organiser to indicate to us the order in
which the boats completed the journey.

a
commemorative plaque at a cost of €25 - the plaque has an oval space
where you can engrave your
completion number!

The journey is a circular journey, clockwise or anti-clockwise - e.g.
two separate trips from Athlone to Dublin via the Grand and Athlone to
Dublin via the Royal do NOT constitute a G&S journey. The
journey can be done over several stages - many are taking more than
one year to do the trip.
For those who wish to do the trip in company, there are usually a
number of boats heading into Dublin in late April, early May to
participate in the Dublin Rally,
departing from Dublin in late May, early June - just let
the organising committee at Dublin Branch know.

Partial journeys completed prior to the opening of the Royal Canal in
October 2010 do not count towards the award of a certificate.

Lift-outs around locks are permitted for canoes and small boats

A limited lift-out is permitted to avoid a notified obstruction to
navigation (e.g. lock under emergency repair).

Evidence of completion of the journey shall be provided to the
organising committee on request - evidence may include a stamped
LogBook, photographs, evidence of lock passage and similar.

No "speed" records which involve necessary violation of the Canal
Acts will be entertained.

The skipper should be a member of the IWAI or another approved organisation
including the Royal Canal Amenity Group (RCAG), Heritage Boat Association (HBA), Irish Canoe Union
(ICU), ISA and UK-based IWA. If you're not a member of any of these
organisations, you can
join the IWAI online!

In terms of permits & fees, boats have two options
for using the Grand and Royal canals. The first option is an annual
licence covering both passage and moorings: this covers all fees,
including locks, for all those waterways. Alternatively, you can pay a
monthly mooring fee plus a small charge per lock: the total due has to
be paid in advance for the entire length of the journey. Fees
are payable to Waterways
Ireland who control the waterways. Boats over 10hp must be
registered with Waterways Ireland (no charge at present).
NOTE that currently Waterways Ireland are only issuing the Annual
Permit - see "Permits & Registrations" section
here
Click
on the relevant link for further information (including on-line
charts) about Navigating the
Grand Canal,
Royal Canals and
River Shannon
including on-line charts.
Paper charts or guides for all three
navigations can be purchased from the
IWAI shop.
See also our Tips on Travelling the Royal
Canal

In undertaking this journey, be advised that the organising
committee or Dublin Branch is explicitly NOT organising an "event" -
it is simply helping you the boater commemorate an achievement.
No responsibility attaches to the committee or Dublin Branch for any
actions of inactions of others or damage or injury to vessel or crew
during this journey.

Overall

Like all canals,
the urban sections of both canals can suffer from dumping - clothing, plastic,
duvets and the like. Some boats lead a charmed life while others seem to
attract every chocolate wrapper in the canal. Take it gently through the
city sections. Weed can be an issue late in the season (July onwards).
The later in the season, the more weed and algal blooms you're likely to
encounter.
At left is the one passport stamp you don't want to collect. We've issued this
"loyalty" stamp to
Irish Diving & Marine Contractors Ltd. who'll happily apply it
to your passport if you need their assistance!

Grand Canal:

Those intending to use the section of the Grand Canal
between Locks 1 and 12 of the main line should give 2 days notice to Waterways
Ireland - Waterways Ireland
have issued Marine Notices governing
boating on the section of the Grand Canal between Ringsend,
Portobello and onward to 12th Lock. In essence, it involves giving
two days notice of travel since you must be accompanied by
lockkeepers during the transit.
See the Marine Notice concerning movement of boats
in Dublin on the Grand Canal.

Lifts will not happen if there is no demand. For further information, or
to make use of a scheduled opening please
contact the Waterways Ireland Eastern Regional Office on 353 (0)1 868 0148

Closer
to the Liffey, the Sheriff St. bridge
doesn't lift (clearance at "normal" levels is 88" or 2.2m) but Spencer Dock will be lowered to
let you get under Sheriff St. bridge. A low ESB cable was removed in
March 2011.

The Scherzer rolling bridge which lies between the Sea Lock and the
Liffey is now bolted in place. You can only access the Liffey near low tide as seen
below.

The underwater profile of Neads Bridge in Mullingar may cause problems for
full size wide-bottomed craft such as traditional GCC M-boats (or even B boats) as Mick
Farrell found out - see
this forum discussion
for more detail. This was sorted by raising the level over a period of
three days. However, he's been past here a 2nd time without encountering
any problem.

The
Record of vessels which have navigated
the "Green & Silver" Route has moved to
here, but here are a few images to give
you encouragement!

Cameron & Genevieve Gleeson of the Clontarf
Yacht & Boat Club, at just 12 and 16yrs old are the youngest
overall crew to complete the journey in an IDRA 14 dinghy.